Unlock Seasonal Success with Temporary Hospitality Staff

Struggling to keep your venue fully staffed during peak times without overspending? Seasonal staff could be the answer. Rotaready users love how we help to simplify workforce management with our smart rota software. By automating schedules and streamlining payroll, you can keep your team flexible and efficient no matter the season.

What do we mean by seasonal employment?

Seasonal employment offers temporary roles during peak demand, like the summer holidays or Christmas rush. It gives hospitality operators the flexibility to quickly add extra staff when things get busy and reduce hours during quieter periods. 

With seasonal workers stepping in at key times, hospitality businesses can stay agile without the pressure of long-term commitments or added costs.

The challenges of seasonal employment in hospitality

With new faces rotating in and out, it’s hard to offer the seamless experience that customers expect. Temporary staff may not be familiar with your processes, leading to service gaps or slower turnaround times. This can also put a heavy strain on your core team, leading to burnout and turnover.

On top of that, the unpredictability of demand can make staffing a guessing game. Unexpected spikes or dips, caused by factors like weather or last-minute events, leave you scrambling to fill shifts or cutting hours unnecessarily. This kind of unpredictability can hurt your bottom line and morale.

However, there are ways to ease these challenges:

• Recruitment: Building a pool of trusted seasonal workers from previous years can help you avoid the mad rush of finding new staff each season.
• Training and Retention: Quick, streamlined training programs can reduce service gaps. Offering incentives for repeat seasonal hires can also ensure you maintain quality.
• Scheduling and Payroll: Managing shift changes and payroll for a rotating workforce is tough, but with Rotaready’s smart scheduling tools, you can automate much of the process, reducing errors and saving time.

The key is having a solid strategy in place to minimise these challenges, and that’s where smart tools like hospitality rota software come into play.

Advantages and disadvantages of seasonal employment

Advantages:

• Flexibility: One of the biggest perks of hiring seasonal staff is the flexibility it offers. Whether you’re preparing for a summer rush or a festive season boom, seasonal employees allow you to scale your team up when things get busy, and scale down during quieter periods. This flexibility is a lifesaver when demand is unpredictable.

• Cost efficiency: Seasonal staff are a great way to manage costs. You only pay for extra help when you really need it, which helps avoid unnecessary overheads during quieter times.

• Fresh perspectives: Hiring seasonal staff can bring in new ideas and fresh energy, which is particularly useful in customer-facing roles. A new hire might suggest a more efficient way of doing things or offer feedback from the customer’s point of view that you wouldn’t get from long-term staff who are used to the routine. These fresh insights can even inspire permanent changes.

• Building a talent pool: Seasonal hires can act as a testing ground for future full-time employees. Hospitality businesses can identify top performers during busy seasons and rehire them in the future or even offer permanent positions when they become available. This way, you’re not starting from scratch every time recruitment rolls around.

Disadvantages:

• Inconsistency in service quality: Temporary staff, while essential during peak periods, may not have the same experience or commitment as your permanent team. This can lead to a dip in service quality. For example, a seasonal hire may not be fully up to speed on your menu, daily operations, or the level of service your regulars have come to expect, which can impact customer satisfaction.

• Higher recruitment and training costs: Hiring seasonal staff isn’t just about filling shifts. You’ll need to invest time and money in recruitment, training, and onboarding each new team member, only for them to leave once the busy season is over. This revolving door of staff can drain resources and leave you constantly training new people, which is especially challenging in a fast-paced environment like hospitality.

• Lower team cohesion: Bringing in temporary staff can affect the dynamic of your permanent team. With new faces constantly coming in and out, it can be harder to build strong working relationships. In hospitality, where smooth teamwork is essential for providing great customer experiences, this lack of cohesion can slow things down.

• Higher risk of burnout for permanent staff: If you’re relying on your core team to train and support seasonal hires, there’s a risk of overworking them. Permanent staff might need to pick up the slack when seasonal workers are less experienced or undertrained. This added pressure can lead to burnout, particularly if your core team is small and stretched thin.

Best practices for managing seasonal employment

Recruit early:

Don’t wait for the rush—build your pool of seasonal workers ahead of time.

Employee scheduling forecasts can be incredibly helpful here, allowing you to predict when you’ll need more hands on deck based on past seasons. By planning ahead, you’ll avoid last-minute scrambling.

Offer competitive pay:

To attract and retain the best seasonal talent, make sure your pay rates are competitive. Payroll integration makes it easier to ensure that seasonal staff are paid promptly and accurately, reducing errors and building trust. You can also automate overtime calculations and other pay adjustments, making seasonal workers more likely to stick around for the entire period.

Streamline your onboarding:

Even for temporary roles, it’s crucial that seasonal hires receive proper training. Keep training focused on essential tasks so new hires can get up to speed quickly without overwhelming them or sacrificing quality.

Create a positive work environment:

Engaged temporary staff are more likely to perform better. Rotaready’s shift swap functionality allows seasonal employees to swap or cover shifts easily, giving them more control over their schedule. This flexibility boosts morale, leading to better customer service and reduced turnover during peak periods.

Maintain records for future hires:

Don’t lose track of your best seasonal workers! By keeping detailed records of seasonal staff – including their past performance, preferred shifts, and availability – it’s easier to reach out to top performers in the future and offer them roles, saving you time and effort during the next busy period. 

Ready to streamline your seasonal workforce management?

In this article, we’ve explored the advantages and disadvantages of seasonal employment and offered actionable strategies to overcome the challenges. Seasonal staffing can be tricky, but with the right tools, you can make the process smooth and efficient.

Rotaready’s hospitality rota software streamlines scheduling by allowing managers to easily adjust staff hours, track time and integrate payroll systems. With its flexible scheduling features and automatic time tracking, Rotaready helps you stay on top of things – even when your team is constantly changing.

Using a smart rota solution like Rotaready reduces confusion, improves timekeeping and ensures seamless payroll management, helping businesses manage seasonal staff with ease. Additionally, it keeps a record of past seasonal workers, making future hiring even simpler.

Book a demo today to see how our smart scheduling software can help you manage your seasonal workforce with ease.